


Devotion

by cailie_crusader



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Original Work
Genre: Aftermath of Possession, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Blind Character, Blindness, Blood and Violence, Demons, Dragons, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, Goddesses, Gods, Half-orc, Human/Monster Romance, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Magic, Magic School, Magical Artifacts, Major Original Character(s), Marriage, Mates, Monster sex, Multi, Nymphs & Dryads, Orcs, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Original Mythology, Possession, Pregnancy, Resurrection, Saving the World, Seven Deadly Sins, Sex, Shameless Smut, Slow Burn, Temporary Character Death, Undead, Unhealthy Relationships, Unplanned Pregnancy, Unrequited Crush, Vampires, Werewolves, Worldbuilding, but not really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-02-25
Packaged: 2019-10-31 00:41:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17839124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cailie_crusader/pseuds/cailie_crusader
Summary: An Orc, a human, and a few deities save the world...basically every dungeon and dragons campaign ever.





	1. The Meeting Place

**Author's Note:**

> This story is very near and dear to my heart. Tigereyecosplay and I have been writing this for well over a year, and now I have finally decided to publish our story thus far (With her permission of course). I hope you enjoy this and fall in love with all of our characters, just as we have. If a chapter contains a scene that is NSFW, I will put it in the title so those who do not wish to read that sort of thing will be aware and able to skip over the scene.

The sun was high in the sky, past its midday peak, but still shining bright and hot. The sun’s rays shone down on an orc as he made his was through the deep forest called The Night Wood. The orc could see nothing through the tall trees that surrounded him in every which direction, circling him like vultures waiting for the death of their next meal. He had been walking through this endless sea of green for a forgotten number of days. He was hungry, tired from restless nights, and almost out of coin. He needed to find work. His lips turned downward into a frown, brows furrowing in frustration at the thought of work. He doubted he would be able to find any. Orcs tended to intimidate even the bravest men, but none came close to his own size and stature. One look of his dark eyes would usually send people running. He did not look like most orcs with his dark mocha skin rather than the traditional green hue. His tusks were long and curved up to roughly rest just past his nostrils. His black hair was shaggy and long and he had a beard to match. Scars riddled his skin, signs of battle and victory.

It was only when the trees parted did his thoughts return to his journey. His gaze flicked upward to read an old wooden sign, the arrow that pointed in what he assumed was a northward direction was carved into the damp wood. Just above the arrow were the words ‘ERAST 2 MILES’. The orc gave a huff, nostrils flaring as he exhaled. He couldn’t read the sign, but recognized the number 2. Something, two, in a northern direction. He assumed that this was how far away the next town was. This tended to be the case whenever he came cross signs like this. He gripped at the strap of the homemade satchel strapped over his broad, bare chest with renewed vigor. Almost every down had a market. He’d be able to restock on food and perhaps some new pants. The orc then frowned again. Those things cost money, money that he didn’t have. He didn’t have much hope for hire, however, there was a chance someone would pay him for manual labor.

The two mile trek did not take the orc long, in fact, he was surprised at how quickly he had stumbled upon the town called Erast. As expected, the townsfolk stopped in their daily tasks to gawk at him. The orc noted that most of the people here were either human or dwarf, though he did spot one or two elves-possibly half elves. His inky gaze scanned over the myriad of facial expressions ranging from disgust to cautious intrigue. In response, he cast his eyes downward, shoulders slumping as he tried to appear smaller and less scary. He started to trudge through the main street of the town, avoiding the gaze of the many onlookers who were silently, and not so silently, judging him. He walked and walked until he bumped into someone.

“Sorry.” The orc grumbled out. His voice was deep and gravely, quite fitting for an orc of his size.

The person he had bumped into scoffed before turning to the open door he had just walked out of.

“Are you sure you don’t want any help, Iona?” He called into the quaint building.

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it.” A soft, feminine voice replied.

The man, who the orc now recognized as an elf, nodded and pushed past the large orc before making his way back into the town’s center.

Absentmindedly, the orc lumbered inside the building, ducking as he passed through the doorway as to not hit his head. A soft ringing of a bell signaled his arrival. The smell of lavender and tea hit his nostrils and he let out a content sigh. His eyes scanned the many shelves, wooden planks adorned with many bottles of different sizes and colors. Each was labeled with a small tag tied around the bottle’s neck that he could not read. Some of the bottles’ contents were constantly abubble, whilst others swirled with different sorts of magic. He had wandered into a potion shop.

“Hello! Welcome to Eld’s Elixirs! How can I help you today?” Called out the same voice he had heard earlier.

The orc turned his attention to the sound of the soft voice and was stunned to find a human woman standing behind a counter. Her skin was fair, complimenting the way her large emerald green eyes shone in the sunlight that peered through the stained glass windows of the shop. The freckles that covered her cheeks and nose looked like hundreds of tiny kisses from the sun god, Vasreus, himself. Her hair was black, falling to just past her shoulders, the curly locks pinned back to keep them from hanging in her face while she worked. She wore a green dress, donning a cream colored apron over the green fabric. She was quite a bit shorter than he, the orc guessed that she would probably come up just past the midpoint of his pectorals. He quickly averted his gaze, hoping not to scare the human.

“Looking for work…” He replied after a moment of silence.

The woman paused, eyes looking the hulking figure up and down. She seemed to be thinking. After a moment, a smile tugged at her lips.

“I won’t be able to pay much, but I could use some help moving boxes and keeping the stock organized.” She looked up to the orc to meet his gaze. “Does that sound adequate?” She asked.

The orc was stunned. Without saying a word, he vigorously nodded in response. This reaction pulled a laugh from the woman and a smile. She extended her hand, her smile widening as her eyes closed.

“Well, I am Iona Eld. What is your name, stranger?”

The orc graced at the woman named Iona’s hand cautiously before grasping it with his own. His hand enveloped hers in a warm and firm grasp as he shook it.

“Cerious. My name is Cerious, Miss Iona.”

Iona nodded. “Cerious. Thats a nice name.”

Cerious was still quite shocked. Why was she not scared of him? _Everyone_ was scared of him. After a moment he released her hand, letting his own fall back to his side.

“Thank you.”

Iona chuckled again, the sound music to his ears. It had been ages since he had heard someone genuinely laugh.

“Not a man of many words, I see.” She stepped out from behind the counter, placing her hands on her hips. “I was just about to close up shop but if you’re hungry, I can make some dinner.”

Cerious took a step back. He didn’t want to intrude on a stranger’s-his boss’s- meal. Though she seemed nice, he wouldn’t want to overstep his boundaries and scare her and this new job off.

“No, I insist. I’d enjoy the company.” The woman insisted. “Just because I’m your boss now, doesn’t mean we can’t be friendly.”

Cerious nodded. She did have a point. “Right. I’ll follow you, Miss Iona.”

Iona smiled, motioning for him to follow her up a flight of stairs nestled in the back of the shop. At the top of the stairs, She pulled out a set of keys from her apron pocket and using the silver one to unlock the door in front of her. Cerious watched her curiously from over her shoulder as the door was pushed open and she walked inside.

On the other side of the door sat what Cerious assumed was her home. The space was large and open for the most part, the only other room was settled in the back. Against the wall parallel to the stairs sat a kitchen. The utilities were quite nice, well, nicer than Cerious had ever seen. But, he had never been in an actual kitchen before.

Iona moved to hang her apron on a hook next to the large icebox, enchanted to keep the insides and its contents forever cold. She then turned back to Cerious and beckoned him inside.

“Please, come in and make yourself comfortable.”

Cerious looked nervous, eyes flicking around the room before walking inside and sitting down at the small kitchen table.

Iona laughed again. “You can relax! I’m not going to bite you or anything.” She smirked, shaking her head, raven colored curls bouncing as she did so.

Cerious practically salivated at the thought. He hadn’t had stew in gods know how long. He nodded vigorously, his excitement getting the better of him. “That fine. I love stew.”

Iona’s smile widened. “Well that’s good to hear.” She said as she rolled up her sleeves.

The woman stooped down to open the ice chest, the frosty air causing her to shiver once the cold hit her face. She picked out the last of the boar meat she had as well as a few vegetables. Once she had all of the ingredients, she stood again, laying all of her uncooked meal on the counter top. It was then that she conjured a flame in her palm, using the magical fire to light the stove.

Cerious was caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the dancing flames that sat within Iona’s palm.

“You can do magic..?” He asked

Hearing his question, Iona turned as she placed a pot on the stove and began to create the broth of the stew. She gave a smile and nodded.

“I can. I studied at The Arcanum when I was younger, but the main reason I am able to do magic is because I was blessed by the goddess of fire, Pelé.” She explained. “I was really sick when I was younger. She made me better, and gave me her blessing. She moved her hair to the side, to show the mark of the goddess in question. Burned into the back of her neck was an intricate spiral that glowed a soft gold every time she conjured another flame. It was after both of my parents died.”

“I’m sorry…for your loss…”

Iona shrugged. “It’s fine. They died a long time ago. I never really knew them…”

The conversation came to a halt after that, the only thing breaking the silence was the sound of the rolling water within the large pot and the ‘plop’ of the vegetables as they slipped into the water to be cooked. The soft ‘hiss’ of searing meat filled the air, followed by the mouth watering smell of cooking meats and spices.

Iona cooked for a while, humming softly to herself as she guided the now cooked meat into the pot. She covered the pot with a lid, willing the heat of the fire down to let the stew simmer and to let the flavors of each ingredient mingle and intertwine.

Once she was sure that her hard work was not going to boil over or burn, she moved to sit across from her orc guest. She smoothed out the skirt of her dress before leaning forward a bit.  
“So, what brings you to Erast? We don’t see many orcs around here. The only ones I know are Urulg and his mate, Dura. They haven’t invited me to meet the kids yet. Urulg said that he had to make sure they wouldn’t bite me before I’m allowed back over.” Iona laughed

Ah. This place was called Erast. Cerious nodded as the human spoke. That must’ve been what the sign on the road said. He thought Erast was a nice name, easy to say. It probably would’ve been easy to spell too if he had known how to read and write.

  
“I was looking for work. No clan, so have to make due on my own.” He replied, glancing over at the large pot over on the stove. “I, uh, am surprised that I do not scare you, Miss Iona.” He admitted, his dark gaze moving back to the woman and connecting with her bright green orbs.

“Why? You may be bigger than every orc I’ve met, but that doesn’t make you inherently scary.” She replied. “If I’m being honest here, when you asked for work, the first thing that came to mind was: He’s tall enough to reach the top shelves.” She shrugged, leaning back in her chair. “I mean, yea , you’re intimidating, your people usually are, but I don’t like to make judgements based on people’s appearances. there are so many different kinds of people. Why limit yourself to just one or two races?”

That was sound logic. Cerious shifted in his chair to try and get more comfortable. “That makes sense. I am pretty tall.”

For the first time in a while, a smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he let out a gravely chuckle. He folded his arms over his chest, letting his tense posture relax a bit. He rolled his shoulders, glancing over again at the pot of stew. By the gods, he was hungry and he hadn’t smelled anything that good since he had left the capital. Iona followed his gaze and stood.

“It should be ready soon.” She announced as she walked over to the stove, lifting the lid from the pot and stirring its contents with a wooden spoon.

  
A few minutes later, Iona grabbed two bowls and spooned some stew into the both of them. After she placed the lid back on the pot to keep the stew warm and extinguished the flame underneath of it, she brought the two bowls of boar stew over to the table. She placed one in front of Cerious and one in front of her own chair and sat down.

Cerious didn’t even bother to pick up the spoon she had provided him. He just lifted the bowl to his lips and drank the stew down. It warmed him from the inside out. He let out a soft groan of satisfaction as he consumed the dinner that his employer had so kindly provided him.

Iona was shocked at the display at first. She hadn’t realized just how hungry he was. How long had he been without food? She bit her lip lightly in worry. Perhaps she had taken on more than she could handle. Did he have a place to stay? Surely the inn was open but the inn keeper, Bianca, didn’t like orcs much. Her eyes flicked from her dinner to the orc.

Cerious slammed the bowl back down on the table’s surface, the table itself shaking a bit from the force.

“Can I have seconds?” He asked hurriedly, as if this would be the last meal he would have for some time.

Taken aback, Iona nodded. “S-Sure. If you would like. There’s plenty more-“

She never got the chance to finish her sentence before Cerious stood and rapidly made his way to the stove to spoon a second helping into his bowl.

Iona watched him as she ate ate her own stew. She held a concerned curiosity in her eyes. Cerious didn’t notice the look in her eye as he sat down across from her once again. He made quick work of his second helping as well, a satisfied look on his face as he set down the bowl for the second time.

“So… Do you have a place to sleep tonight? I could ask Bianca to set you up in the inn.” Iona offered.

Cerious visibly tensed. “No inns!” He growled out instinctively. He then dropped his shoulders, his gaze soon following suit. “Sorry… Inns aren’t a good idea. I’ll camp out in the woods. I’ll be fine.”

His eyes flicked to look out of the window only to realize how late it was getting. He stood rapidly, knocking the chair he had been sitting in over. He looked panicked and worried.

“I need to go…!” He said his voice harboring a frantic undertone.

“Cerious? Is everything alright?” Iona asked, standing in a much more graceful manner.

“I need to get out of here…!!” He managed, making his way to the door, flinging it open and rapidly making his way down the stairs.

Cerious quickly thanked Iona for the meal and Sid he would be back in the morning before the store opened. He gave his boss a quick but stiff bow before dashing back the way he came into town. He needed to get the woods, fast.

Iona stood in the doorway of her shop, watching the fleeting figure of Cerious as he dashed into the night. She frowned a bit before moving back inside. She closed the door and locked it. Had she said or done something wrong? She shook her head before she made her way back upstairs to get ready for bed and to wait for the morning to come.

The forest that night was the most lively it had been in a long time. No one who was awake could identify what sort of animal had made the guttural and beastly roar that had caused the trees to tremble. No one knew what sort of terror had just made its temporary home in The Night Wood, just a few peaceful miles from the quiet town of Erast.

 


	2. A Reading Lesson

When Iona woke the next morning, she gathered herself a quick breakfast before moving down from her home into the shop below to get ready for the day. She moved into the back room to check up on her stock. She needed to make a few more healing potions. She nodded, writing that down into her notebook. She jotted down a few more tasks before closing the notebook and making her way back out into the main shop. It was then that she saw Cerious standing beside the door. His back was to her as he looked out into the street, hands stuffed inside the pockets of his pants. Iona could see that a few fresh gashes adorned his arms and chest, the skin around the abrasions red and irritated. She frowned a bit at this, brows lifting slightly in concern. She moved over to the door and unlocked it. As she pulled the door open, the soft bell inside the shop rang out, catching Cerious’s attention.

 

“Morning, Miss Iona.” He greeted softly, turning to look at the shop keep.

 

Iona gave him a warm smile. “Good morning, Cerious.”

 

The woman held the door open wide, as the orc entered the building, ducking beneath the door frame, as he walked inside. She followed after him, shutting the door and locking it. She then moved in front of the large orc, placing her hands on her hips.

 

“Alright. Before we open shop, I need you to tidy the floors a little. She pointed over to a broom closet next to the set of stairs leading up to her apartment. “You should find a broom and a dust pan in there.”

 

Cerious nodded, noting the location and the instructions, though, he had no idea what in the nine hells a dustpan was.

 

“Once you’re done with that, I’ll need you to place more healing potions and some sleeping draughts on the shelves.” She said. “Those are in the back room, which is where I will be making new potions to replenish the stock.” She smiled. “Once those tasks are done, we should be able to open up for the day.”

 

Cerious nodded again. This was going to be…interesting. He had seen healing potions before, if he remembered correctly they were a green color….maybe? Cerious let out a soft sigh. He didn’t want to let Iona know of his incompetence on the subject of reading. Perhaps if he just guessed, he would be fine and she wouldn’t have to know. The orc moved over to the broom closet and opened it. He easily found the broom he needed, and grabbed what he believed to be a dustpan. He assumed that is what it was, anyway. The only other things in the closet were a mop, some rags, and a bucket. He shrugged, guiding the door closed with his elbow. Even if the object in his grasp wasn’t in fact a dustpan, he would make it work.

 

Iona gave a soft smile as he walked toward the broom closet. She gave a nod, rolling up her sleeves and moving into the back room. The room was stocked full of empty bottles, different oils, plants, stones and crystals, and various magical tools that were used in potion making. She pulled on some thick gloves and quickly got to work using a mortar and pestle to grind some mint leaves into a fine paste before sliding them into an unlit cauldron. Next with some effort, she managed to break down some green aventurine into a fine powder. She slid the powder into the cauldron, she then filled it about a quarter way with enchanted water before dropping a few drops of rosemary oil into the mixture. It was then that she began to combine the ingredients, channeling some of her own heal magic into the concoction. This caused the liquid to glow a soft green as the ingredients combined. She had to stir at it for a while before the potion was complete. It was then that Cerious opened the door, walking in to the back room.

 

“Ive finished cleaning up, Miss Iona.”He said softly, shifting uncomfortably in the cramped room. Well, cramped for him, anyway.

 

The woman moved out from behind the countertop that she had just been working at. She smiled.

 

“Fantastic!” She said, clasping her hands together. “Do you mind if I take a look?” She asked.

 

Cerious shook his head. “No. I don’t mind. You are the boss. I gotta make you happy, Miss Iona.”

 

Iona chuckled. “That is very true.”

 

She walked out into the main room and looked around. She was a bit shocked to see how clean it was. Usually, from what she had seen, the orcish definition of clean was very different than society’s usual definition of the word.

 

“Oh wow…” She whispered after a moment.

 

“Do I need to do more?” He asked, “I wasn’t sure how clean you wanted it.”

“No, you did wonderfully.” She reassured. “This is great!”

 

Iona then turned, guiding him back into the back room.

 

“Ok, I’m going to need you to move about twenty of the healing potions and maybe… fifteen of the sleeping draughts out onto the shelves that have the names of the potions on them.” She requested, moving back over to the crafting station and getting to work again.

 

Oh no… This is what Cerious had been dreading. The healing potions that he had just seen Iona finished were green and thankfully those were the only green colored potions in the room. He easily picked them out from the rest of the colorful bottles. He scooped up a large portion of the potions into his arms and walked out into the main floor of the shop. He looked around, scanning the shelves. Please find something green. Please find something gree- There! On a high shelf, near the front window was a singular health potion, left over from the day before.

 

He smiled. This was perfect. He managed to do this without reading. He carefully placed the potions on the shelf, one after the other until he felt that the section was at capacity. Once he was satisfied, he walked back into the back room for the real challenge: successfully finding the sleeping draughts. His eyes scanned the crates of potions trying to rule some of them out by color. Definitely not red, probably not yellow or orange…maybe a cooler looking color? Grey? Maybe. Blue? Possibly. Purple? Perhaps. He frowned, brows furrowing a bit. This tactic wasn’t really helping.

 

“Miss Iona…?” He begrudgingly asked after a few minutes of staring at potion bottles.

 

“Hmm?” Iona’s head popped up from behind her station, a few white feathers in her grip.

 

“I…uh…I need some help..”

 

“What’s wrong, Cerious?” She asked, placing the white feathers down onto the table before moving out from behind her workstation to stand beside him.

 

The orc looked down at the human nervously. “I don’t….I don’t know which one is the sleeping draught.” He admitted.

 

Iona looked down, crouched and then picked up a bottle filled with a dull purple-grey liquid that shimmered in the light. “Did I not label these?” She asked herself, looking over the bottle for its tag.

 

“N-No…You did…I just…” He sighed. “I just can’t read.” He admitted, looking away.

 

“Oh? Well, why didn’t you say so?” She asked, standing back up, potion still in hand.

 

“You’re not…upset?” He asked, still a bit apprehensive.

 

Iona shook her head. “Of course not. I should’ve asked if you could. It was my mistake, I apologize.”

 

Cerious bit his lower lip. “Don’t…Don’t apologize to me.” He requested. “I’m sure you’re used to being around people who can actually read.”

 

The woman gave a nervous chuckle. “I guess so...” She rubbed the back of her neck nervously. “I assume that since you can’t read that you can’t write either.”

 

Cerious nodded. “That’s right. I never learned how.”

 

“Did your clan not teach you the basics?” She asked

 

Cerious paused, shifting his weight a bit nervously. “I don’t... I don’t have a clan.” He said. “I’ve been alone for...a really long time.”

 

After a moment, Iona spoke up. “Would you like to learn? To read and write, I mean.”

 

The orc was taken aback by the question. “Well, it would certainly make things easier.” He admitted with a shrug. “Especially with this job so I don’t have to constantly bug you for help.”

 

Iona nodded. “Alright. After we close, I’ll teach you some.”

 

“Wait, are you serious?”

 

“Of course. It’ll help the both of us.” She gave him a smile. “Don’t worry about it, ok? I’d be happy to help out.”

 

Cerious felt his heart speed up. What was this? The pounding in his chest felt weird. His heart only beat like this with the adrenaline and excitement of a hunt. Iona wasn’t food so, what was happening. He glanced away, averting his gaze from hers, hoping that the loss of eye contact would calm his racing heart.

 

“Thank you, Miss Iona.” He said softly before getting back to work.

 

Cerious picked up the crate of sleeping draughts and brought them out to the main floor. He picked up one of the bottles, looking carefully at the label and trying to find the shelf that matched the odd symbols. Once he found it, he began to arrange the bottles nicely, just as he had done to the healing potions earlier. Once he had finished, Iona opened the shop for the day. Cerious decided it would be best to help organize in the back where he wouldn’t be seen. He didn’t want to scare off her customers, after all.

 

Over the next few weeks, the days went like this. Cerious would come in from the forest for work, he and Iona would organize the stock and clean up before starting the day, he would get a lesson after closing and then he would go back into the woods for the night. As the two of them grew closer, Cerious could notice that his heart quickened in the mornings when he first saw Iona. Whenever he would bump into her, his heart would hasten. Whenever she used her own hand to guide his while he learned to spell out his own name, his heart thundered in his ears.

 

Over the weeks that Cerious had been working at Eld’s Elixirs, he had learned of Iona’s clumsiness when it came to handling fragile items such as pottery. It was like she had an inane skill of tripping over thin air if she was concentrating too much. He also learned her skills with magic really shined when she wasn’t thinking at all. He would watch her in the back room sometimes as she made new potions each morning. She would move gracefully as she casted spells, to him it almost looked like it was some sort of dance that he would never be able to master. Sometimes she would sing while she worked. She had a nice voice, soothing to listen to. He wondered if a voice like that could end all war and calm even the most ferocious of beasts.

 

The most ferocious of beasts...oh by the gods he hoped she could calm it...calm him. It was wishful thinking, hoping she could fix whatever went on with him at night. She was a mage so...maybe....but it was a long shot. He didn’t want to hurt her. He would feel horrible if he did. He hated hurting anyone, even if he couldn’t remember when he did. He hated it. Not being able to remember what happened when the moon was up. He would just wake up with blood all over his face and hands, covered in fresh wounds all over like some beast had angrily clawed at his flesh until he bled crimson rivers that ran over his skin.

 

“Cerious, are you sure you can’t stay for dinner?” Iona asked, closing the book she had just been reading aloud.

 

Cerious gave her a nod. “Yeah. Staying any later wouldn’t be a very good idea.” He replied with a soft, nervous chuckle as he stood.

 

“Are you...like some sort of werewolf or something?” The human asked after a moment.

 

Cerious laughed, a real laugh this time. “Nah. That would be easier to explain.”

 

“So...a curse, then?”

 

He nodded, “Something like that.”

 

“Well, curses can be broken, can’t they? Maybe if I saw what was going on, I could try and help.” Iona suggested.

 

“No. No way.” Cerious frowned. “I will not let you do that.”

 

“And why not?” She asked, placing her hands on her hips defiantly. “I can take care of myself.”

 

“I don’t want to hurt you.” He said firmly, “I couldn’t live with myself if I hurt you.”

 

“You wouldn’t hurt me, Cerious.” Iona said, now folding her arms over her chest.

 

“I might.” He said, giving her a stern look. “I really have to go, Iona. Please, don’t follow me.”

 

Begrudgingly, Iona opened the store’s door to let her employee out to the cool evening air. Cerious thanked her as he stepped outside, rolling his shoulders and straightening his posture.

 

“Goodnight, Miss Iona.” He said, bowing his head.

 

“Goodnight, Cerious.” She replied, giving him a smile. After a moment she added, “See you in the morning.” She leaned up on to the balls of her feet to press a soft kiss to his cheek.

 

She smiled, the low light of the evening disguising the soft pink color that dusted her cheeks. Iona stepped back inside, closing the door behind her.

 

Cerious stood there for about a minute, shock evident on his face. What was that? What did she just do? Was that a kiss? He reached up, ghosting his fingertips over the spot that her lips had just been. Why did he want her to do that again. He shook his head. No. Stop that. That wasn’t going to happen. For her safety, he wouldn’t let it happen. The orc frowned slightly as he made his way back toward the Night Wood as the sun began to set. He could feel this darkness begin to over take him as he made his way past the barrier of trees. He gave a howl in pain as the transformation began. It hurt. Badly. It always hurt. But he would forget, there was always bliss in knowing that he would forget. And so he did, his vision went dark and he forgot.


End file.
